The scope of the PCMCH is secondary, tertiary and quaternary services, delivered in both community and hospital settings and includes responding to the needs of marginalized and vulnerable communities across Ontario. The work of the Council reflects the importance of relationships among providers and organizations across the continuum of care.

The strength of the PCMCH lies in its collaborative working model. By bringing together multi-disciplinary providers from across the continuum of care, the Council’s work is grounded in frontline experience and expertise, well-tested best practices and consistent and credible evaluation.

PCMCH provides leadership in bringing the maternal newborn child and youth health care sector together to plan and implement health care practice solutions that improve access to and the quality of, health care provided to mothers and children in Ontario.

It is estimated that 1 in 5 individuals experience an early pregnancy loss, defined as a loss that occurs at less than 20 weeks into the pregnancy. Experiencing a pregnancy loss can be a very emotional and traumatic time for expectant parents. When patients first experience the symptoms of an early pregnancy loss, they frequently seek medical care in an Emergency Department (ED), however, because these cases still represent a small proportion of total ED visits (less than 1%), healthcare providers and other staff in the ED may not have as much experience treating them, in particular, addressing their emotional and bereavement needs.

The physical and emotional care that healthcare providers can offer to individuals experiencing an early pregnancy loss has an important impact on their long-term emotional well-being. As such, it is critical that healthcare providers working in EDs attend to the patients’ psychological and emotional needs in an empathetic, caring environment. Compassionate care acknowledges pregnancy loss as a loss of life and considers the spiritual, emotional and cultural expressions of the pain that accompanies the loss of a baby.

In January 2017, the Provincial Council for Maternal and Child Health, in partnership with Health Quality Ontario and the Champlain Maternal Newborn Regional Program, convened an Expert Advisory Panel, which was tasked with the development of recommendations for healthcare providers and staff, to guide the provision of compassionate care to patients presenting with a confirmed early pregnancy loss in the ED.

The recommendations, along with their accompanying implementation considerations and tools are available for download below. If you have any questions or comments about this work, please send them to: info@pcmch.on.ca.